BENEATH TROPIC SEAS 



second phase of the display began. This was an 

 acceleration of the same swinging dance, but with 

 vocal accompaniment. Five or six humming turns 

 were made, and then, with only a momentary 

 withdrawal of the tongue, a high insect-like trill 

 of surpassing sweetness arose. It came in short, 

 separate cadences, controlled, like the humming, 

 by the jerky ending of the side swings, the tone 

 rising abruptly three notes at each lateral node. 



For a time this continued, then it increased. 

 The swings, while they occupied the same space, 

 became more rapid, gradually gaining speed until 

 the sequence of trill actually joined, and the bird 

 became a rocketing, swiveling wonder, always, 

 however, level and perfectly steady. 



For the second time the female rose and ap- 

 proached. They faced one another for a brief 

 moment, and again she alighted. Without an 

 instant's hesitation the frenzied male shifted into 

 the third and last scene — the climax of climaxes. 

 Still confined by the unseen bond to the narrow 

 line, the foot of space, he began a maddened fling- 

 ing about of the whole body. I can describe it 

 only by imagining the bird held by the beak and 

 thrashed from side to side. The tongue was with- 

 drawn, the song died away, the tail simply thrashed 

 about after the body, and the reckless rhythm was 

 punctuated by a deep, bee-like droning; sonorous, 

 and wholly unlike any bird sound I have ever 

 heard. I fully expected to see the hummingbird 

 fall headlong any moment, its wing and neck 



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